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Constanzia 'Connie'
Corleone Rizzi (19221998) is a fictional character from The Godfather by
Mario Puzo. In the films, Connie is portrayed by Talia Shire, who is the
sister of director Francis Ford Coppola.
Connie is the daughter of Don Vito Corleone and Carmella Corleone, and
sister of Sonny, Fredo and Michael Corleone. She married Carlo Rizzi, who
abused her. When she complained to Sonny, he beat Carlo until Connie begged
him off.Born in 1922, she is Michael's younger sister. Her husband Carlo
schemed with her brother's rivals, Don Tattaglia and Don Barzini, and once
again beat Connie badly, this time in order to ambush Sonny. Connie called
Sonny in a state of terror, and he drove to Connie's place; while en route
he was ambushed and assassinated. Later, Michael took revenge by having
Carlo killed (by Peter Clemenza), after promising Connie he wouldn't; she
resented him for years afterward.
In the novel The Godfather, Connie at first berates Michael for Carlo
Rizzi's death but a week later apologizes to her brother. She marries less
than a year later, not fulfilling the widow's mandate of respecting the
memory of her late husband. Her role in the films continues in the sequels,
The Godfather, Part II (where she is shown to be the youngest of the four
Corleone children) and The Godfather, Part III.
In the years since Carlo's death, she had a series of meaningless affairs
and marriages just to spite Michael, even borrowing money and abandoning her
children temporarily, but returned to the Family after their mother died.
She had two sons by Rizzi, Victor and Michael Francis. A brief glimpse in
Mama Corleone's funeral scene is the only time that Victor appears in the
trilogy. It was during Michael Francis' baptism that Michael Corleone,
acting as his godfather, presumably at Connie's request, ordered the killing
of members of the Five Families. Michael had Carlo Rizzi killed not long
after that.
By the 1970s, Connie had become involved in the family business, and was
instrumental in persuading Michael to take his nephew Vincent under his wing
and groom him as the new Don. She also poisoned Don Altobello, her godfather,
in retaliation for his attempted assault on the family. In The Godfather
Part III it is indicated that she thinks Fredo has drowned, not murdered on
Michael's orders. Some critics thought this lacked credibility given that
Connie was fully aware of Michael's ruthlessness, especially after Carlo's
death. It can, however, be argued that she was simply in denial, or trying
to convince Michael there was no real fault on his part.
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